Careers
‘Prestige is no longer the primary currency of success in law,’ survey suggests
Lawyers are divided on whether income or flexibility and autonomy are their top priorities in legal practice, according to findings of a survey of 132 attorneys by Paragon Legal, a provider of temporary lawyers for in-house legal departments. (Image from Shutterstock)
Lawyers are divided on whether income or flexibility and autonomy are their top priorities in legal practice, according to findings of a survey of 132 attorneys by Paragon Legal, a provider of temporary lawyers for in-house legal departments.
Forty-nine percent of the surveyed attorneys said income is their top career priority, while 49% said autonomy and flexibility are their top priorities, according to the survey results. Only 3% valued title or prestige the most.
Despite that finding, 46% of the surveyed attorneys said they have stayed longer in jobs than they wanted because they looked prestigious on paper.
The results are based on a survey of 132 verified legal professionals vetted through third-party survey platforms.
More women than men responded to the survey. Sixty-four percent were women, 34% were men, and 2% were nonbinary. The average age of respondents was 43 years old. Forty-seven percent combined were baby boomers (born 1946 to 1964) and Generation X (born 1965 to 1980), 37% were millennials, also known as Generation Y, (born 1981 to 1996), and 16% were Generation Z (born starting in 1997).
Twenty-nine percent of the small group of surveyed Gen Z attorneys said they never worked in a law firms. The percentage decreases to 16% for millennial attorneys and 15% for attorneys in Gen X and baby boomers combined.
Among all attorneys, 43% said billable-hours pressure is the most challenging aspect of firm culture. Fifty-four percent said they have felt pressure to hide their work-life balance goals in legal settings, and 46% said they have left a role because of a poorly managed flexible work arrangement.
Among Gen Z lawyers, 57% said autonomy matters more than income. And 81% said they feel pressure to hide their work-life balance goals.
Seventy-three percent of all the attorneys said law school did not adequately prepare them for the realities of legal practice. Top skills that the lawyers wished that they had learned in law school were business development/client management (45%), followed by work-life balance strategies (42%), mental health and resilience (38%) and managing your practice/finances (31%).
Trista Engel, the CEO of Paragon Legal, noted the high percentage of surveyed Gen Z attorneys who have “never even stepped into a traditional firm” in comments provided to the ABA Journal.
“Many Gen Z lawyers are rejecting the culture that comes with traditional legal firms,” Engel said. “If firms don’t adapt, this generation may simply not engage.”
Engel said other survey results should be a wake-up call.
“Many firms are still clinging to outdated models that prioritize face time and billables,” she said. “Many of today’s lawyers, however, are no longer willing to sacrifice their mental health just to hit an annual quota.”
“Flexibility isn’t just a perk anymore,” she added. “It’s a core component of how attorneys define success. Prestige is no longer the primary currency of success in law.”
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